11. To Midogal

As we both enter the Adventurer’s Guild, I feel eyes on us.

But that was soon gone.

Yesterday’s incident must have been effective. I feel like everyone in the adventurer’s guild is giving off an aura that they don’t want to get involved.

Well, it’s easier for me, too, because I can’t be bothered to do what I did yesterday.

So I went through the request board, but of course there was nothing good at the F and G ranks.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Cleaning up the city
Request rank: G
Reward: Three copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: I want you to clean up the city.
Note: Location will be specified at the registration desk.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Pet Search
Request rank: G
Reward: Three copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: You need to find a missing pet.
Note: You can ask about the pet’s characteristics at the reception desk.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Dog Walking
Request rank: G
Reward: Three copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: I need you to walk my dog for two hours.
Note: You can ask for the location of the client’s residence at the reception desk.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Defeat Slimes【Perpetual】
Request rank: G
Reward: Three copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: Defeat 10 slimes.
Note: Each time you kill 10 slimes, it counts as one achievement.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Gathering Medicinal Herbs【Perpetual】
Request rank: G
Reward: Three copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Content: Collecting 10 bundles of medicinal herbs
Note: Collecting 10 bundles of medicinal herbs will result in one achievement.

【Request Form】
Request: Defeat Wild Wolves
Request rank: F
Reward: Five copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: Defeat five wild wolves.
Note: Defeating five wild wolves counts as one achievement.

【Request Form】
Request Title: Defeating Goblins【Perpetual】
Request rank: F
Reward: Five copper coins
Rank points earned: 1 point
Number of people who can receive request: No limit
Description: Defeat 10 goblins.
Note: Each time you kill 10 goblins, you get one achievement.

I’m wondering if I can get a little more reward for the defeat-type requests, since I’ll probably be able to get materials that I can sell if I properly dismantle the monsters I hunt. I have money earned from duelling, but I need to earn more.

I decided to take on the F-ranked Defeat Wild Wolves.

I’ve heard that you don’t have to bother with constant requests, you can just go to the guild counter with the proof when you’ve accomplished them, so let’s kill some slimes and goblins and collect some herbs.

When I took the request form to the reception counter, I felt that the receptionist was a little scared of me.

Maybe I shouldn’t stay in this city too long. I have to go to Midogal, too. But since I have to strengthen Eleanor, it’s quite difficult to find the right balance.

I learned a new〈Map〉skill during training this morning, but it’s still not very useful. We will have to earn our way out of this, even if it is inefficient.

【Map】
It allows me to auto-map an area centered on myself (radius skill level × 20 meters).
It can also be combined with 〈Detection〉.

Once we got the request, we moved out of the city.

I use my skill level 1〈Map〉to search for wild wolves, goblins, slimes, and medicinal herbs. The basic idea is to let Eleanor take them down, and I’ll back her up.

We took a lunch break in the middle of the day, but in the end, thanks to the hard work we put in until the evening, we were able to achieve quite a lot.

We killed 22 wild wolves, 44 goblins, and 63 slimes, and got 90 bunches of herbs.

When we returned to the guild to report the accomplishment of the requests and sell the materials, they were surprised by the large amount of materials……

The receptionist, who had changed her mind, took proper care of me after that.

「The results are 15 points for the G-rank requests and 16 points for the F-rank requests, for a total of 31 points. So Louis-sama and Eleanor-sama will each be ranked F, and their rank points will be 12 points minus that amount.」

Did today’s request alone raise our rank? The always-on system is nice and easy.

「As a reward, you will receive four silver coins and five copper coins for fifteen G-rated requests, and four silver coins for eight F-rated requests, for a total of eight silver coins and five copper coins.」

Yeah. I knew it, but the rewards for this rank range are low. But will the price of materials be good?

「The buyout is 22 wild wolf pelts for one silver per piece, 22 wild wolf magic stones for five copper per piece, 44 goblin magic stones for two copper per piece, and 63 slime magic stones for one copper per piece. The total of these will be four gold coins, eight silver coins, and one copper coin.」

With the reward for completing the request and the purchase, I ended up with five gold coins, six silver coins, and six copper coins.

This is still a little short of the 10 days of innkeeper’s fees I’ve already paid, but I’m sure I’ll be able to earn more as my rank rises, so I’ll return for today and try again tomorrow.

On the way back, I point out to Eleanor the problems I had with today’s battle.

After returning to the inn, I ate with her, took a bath with her, and slept with her.

Of course, I was a little more moderate at night……

Thus, our first request went off without a hitch.

《23 To the Kingdom of Midogal》

Ten days have passed since the first request was fulfilled.

In the meantime, I was still accomplishing my daily requests at a pretty good pace. Because of this, I was able to raise my adventurer rank to D rank, even though I was only accepting requests from nearby areas.

「Now that Eleanor has been strengthened a bit, it’s time for us to head to Midoria, the royal capital of Midogal. I was hoping to move up a few more ranks, but I guess that will have to wait until I get over there.」
「We’re going to Midoria! I’m sure we’ll be safely reunited with Airi and Lisa!」
「Un, I hope I can see them safely, but I don’t have much information about Airi and Lisa, all I know is that they’re probably in Midoria, so they won’t know what I look like now over there either. Besides, they wouldn’t even know that we are coming. Well, I’ll introduce them to Eleanor when we get there safely.」

Looking at her abilities including my homemade weapons and armour, I’d say she’s about the lower B rank. Her skill level is still low, but it will increase with the〈Accelerated Skill Growth〉.

I was able to transfer the〈Status Enhancement〉to her, so she should be getting stronger at an accelerated rate. I can make even better weapons, armour, and accessories as my〈Craft Master〉skill level increases.

I had just paid for my lodging in advance, so I decided to leave Sumeria without accepting any more requests.

After buying some supplies that we were running low on, and some meat skewers for a quick bite on the way, we headed out of the city. By the way, this is how Eleanor’s status is now.

Name: Eleanor
Gender: Female Race: Beastman Age: 15
Level: 26 Title: Gluttonous Dog Girl
ＨＰ：1865／1865 ＭＰ：1320／1320
Strength: 495 Resistance: 373 Agility: 424 Dexterity: 225 Magic: 122 Spirit: 132
Skills

【Special Skills】
Status Enhancement Lv1・Accelerated Skill Growth Lv1・Accelerated Status Growth Lv1

【Weapons・Physical Skills】
Dagger Arts Lv5・Archery Lv3

【Others】
Crisis Detection Lv2・Intuition Lv3・Detection Lv3・Dismantling Lv6・Service Lv3・Life Magic

【Equipment】
Mithril Dagger ( Strength +50, Agility +30 )
Treant Longbow (Dexterity +30, Agility +30)
Manticore gauntlet (Resistance +50, Dexterity +30)
Manticore breastplate (Resistance +70)
Manticore shin guards (Resistance +50, Agility +30)

◇ ◇ ◇

After resuming our journey, we were already inside the Kingdom of Midogal, passing through several small villages and towns.

There has been no trouble whatsoever.

On the road, I’m training Eleanor as we go.

Before we left Sumeria, we went to buy a carriage, but it seemed there had been a large order a while ago and they were just out of stock. So we had to give up the carriage, and are now moving on foot along the road with the forest to our left.

As we walked with the tranquil scenery in our sights, we heard voices and sounds of people fighting in the distance.

If you walk a little faster, you will see a group of demons, such as the Orc General, Orc Leader, Orc, Ogre General, Ogre Leader, and Ogre, fighting against a group of humans who look like a knight order.

I took a closer look at the group and saw that they were in a formation surrounding an expensive looking carriage, and because they were fighting while protecting it, the speed of eradication was slow. There was also a lot of damage on the Knights’ side, and some of them were already running out of steam.

I decided not to help them because I don’t like nobles after what happened with Alfred. I don’t think all nobles are pricks, but I just can’t shake the bad impression.

I could have just walked right past it, but I had a few thoughts, so I took a look from about 20 meters away.

「Master, are you going to help them? Are you going to leave them alone?」
「Well, I’m just keeping an eye on them for now, but there’s something strange about those monsters, isn’t there? They’re not coming towards us.」
「That’s what I was thinking. I think they’re just trying to get to the carriage.」
「I’ve just 〈appraised〉 the ogres, and they seem to be in a state of 〈taming〉. That means there’s a tamer who’s manipulating them. And that tamer is making them attack.」

As I’ve been convincing myself, I hear Eleanor’s voice from the side.

「What is a 〈tamed〉 state or a ‘tamer’?」

Yeah, I don’t know, considering the environment she’s grown up in. I explain it to her.

「This is something I learned from the library. It seems that there is a skill that can be used to tame monsters and make them listen to you. I’m not making it up. And I’m not particularly interested.」
「Do you have such skills?」
「Ah. That skill is called 〈Taming〉. And you say that the monsters that are being used are in a state of 〈taming〉. I also heard that the people who prefer to use those skills are collectively called tamers. I’ve heard that〈Taming〉has a lot of restrictions, but we can disregard that for now.」
「I’ve learned a lot!」

As Eleanor and I were talking about this, the largest man of the knights came running towards us, leaving the battle to the others.

And he speaks to me in a loud voice while being polite.

「I’m sorry for speaking to you so abruptly, everyone. My name is Meyer, Commander of the Private Order of Duke Campbell in the Kingdom of Midogal. I am ashamed to ask for your help. Would you please help us? Of course we will reward you! As it is now, we may be able to drive away the enemy, but the damage will be much greater. You exude the air of a strong man. I’m sure you can easily defeat an opponent that is too much for us to handle. It seems to me.」

He has the air of a powerful man, and he’s from a duke’s house.

Let’s see what we can do.

I open my mouth, feeling neither eager nor reluctant.

「I’m not sure if this is a power struggle or some kind of conflict of interest between the two sides. I don’t know about that, but I don’t know what’s going on in either camp, so I need to think twice about giving in to one side when I don’t know anything about the other.」
「I’m afraid you’re right. …… I’d say we have our side of the story, and the attacker has his side of the story. I can’t tell you the details, but what I can tell you now is that at least we are not at fault. It pains me that I can’t say anymore, anything else would have to come from the Duke……」

Hmm, what should I do?

It’s a monster that’s attacking them, and it’s not the individual I see over there, but I have a grudge against the Ogre General, so why not do it? And this Commander is quite polite.

「All right, I’m going to take care of this now, so let the other knights back off a bit and just defend. Eleanor is still no match for the Ogre General, so stay with the Commander and watch near the carriage.」
「I understand! I just want to be able to fight more and more as soon as possible!」
「Are you serious?! That’s great! I’m sorry I can’t help you, but I look forward to working with you.」

This level of enemy is no problem at all, so I’ll just get it over with.

First of all, in order to defeat the Ogre General and the Orc General that are in control, I’ll have the other monsters take a【Down Burst】 at once to slow them down.

Then, I fired an【Air Thrust】at the Orc General, killing it in an instant.

At the same time, I used a combination of〈Blink Walk〉and〈Airwalk〉to unleash a flying triangle kick at the Ogre General, snapping its neck.

The monsters were on edge now that I’ve defeated both the Ogre and Orc generals, so I’ll take out the rest at once.

Also, since the monster’s leadership has started to break down, I will check for damage to the rear.

What I saw was Eleanor with a satisfied look on her face and the knights of the order looking astonished.

The back of the carriage seemed to be fine, so I sped up even faster to kill the monsters.

After I had killed all of them, I continued to search the area vigilantly, but there was no sign of the tamer who seemed to have conjured the monsters.

Feeling that this battle was over, I quickly stored the defeated monsters in the 【Item Box】.

I then turned to walk towards Eleanor and the Commander.

《24 Duke Campbell》

When I reached the carriage, an old man with blond hair and a balding crown got out of the carriage.

The man seemed to have a certain dignity about him. Maybe it was the clean-cut blonde hair and goatee.

Meyer opened his mouth, kneeling down to the old man as he got out of the carriage.

「Your Excellency, we have been assisted by someone here. Although there was some damage, it was not catastrophic and we were able to destroy all the monsters.」
「Well, I’m saved. Let me say my gratitudes. But first, Meyer, let’s hurry up and treat the wounded. Unfortunately, we must bring back the bodies of those who have been killed by monsters. Instruct them to stow the bodies in their magic bags.」
「Ha, I respectfully obey. Your Excellency, I know I am being unreasonable, but I promised him a reward for his help to our side, and I ask for your kind consideration. Then, I will go instruct my subordinates.」

The old man whom he called ” Your Excellency ” nodded like a hawk at Meyer’s reply. Seeing this, Meyer also ran toward the knights under his command.

「Well, my name is Harvey von Campbell. I’m a duke in the kingdom of Midogal.」

So this old man is the Duke. I’ll say my name too.

「I’m Louis, and the girl behind me is Eleanor. I’m sorry, but I have to say this first. I’m not rooted in any country, much less a citizen of the Kingdom of Midogal. Also, since I’m an adventurer, I don’t have any reason to be humble to the nobility, so I’ll just talk to you normally. If you don’t like it, tell me right away, and I’ll just take my reward and walk away.」
「That’s no problem, because I’m not going to be arrogant to the people who helped me. I am not such a small man. Ohohohoho」

Hmm. The current exchange has raised the stock of Harvey von Campbell in my mind.

Well, it’s not like I’m going to do anything just because it went up. I don’t want to be used by the nobility.

However, some of the knights are staring at me. I don’t care, though.

「What would you like in terms of rewards, …… money, armour, or magical items?」

We don’t need weapons, etc., because we will eventually make our own good ones.

「I think I’ll settle for money.」

Hearing my words, old man Harvey took out a small bag from the magic bag at hand. There seemed to be some money in it, and he handed it to me.

「Here’s your reward. There are five platinum coins inside. Can you confirm that for me?」

I took a peek inside the sachet I received from Harvey, and then stored it in the【Item Box】.

I’m not sure what the market rate is for a reward, but I could probably stay at a high-class inn for eighty days with just this.

In addition, I thought for a moment that I could treat the injured knights and get a reward for it, but it seems that the Duke household had recovery personnel. They’re not fully recovered, but they seem to be recovering from their injuries without any problems.

I was a little disappointed, but I took what I could get, just as I was about to leave, Harvey called out to me.

「Where are you guys headed?」

He suddenly asks me where I’m going, and I give him a suspicious look.

He had been doing so for a while, but he didn’t seem to be doing anything particularly devious.

Well, I can at least tell him where I’m going.

「We’re on our way to Midoria to visit acquaintances. I haven’t decided how long I’m going to stay there, but I’m sure I’ll be back on the road at some point.」

Hearing those words, Harvey seemed to be thinking about something as he played with his beard with his fingertips.

After a few moments of waiting, the old man in front of me opened his mouth with a look of inspiration on his face.

「Hmm, I see. I’m on my way back to Midoria, coming back from my official duties. There have been some casualties in my Order, and my guards have been reduced. So, why don’t we ask you two to escort us? How about three platinum coins for the escort? You can make yourselves at home in the carriage, except in case of emergency. We’ll be arriving in Midoria in roughly six days.」

I thought about it for a while and thought, “Isn’t this a pretty lucrative request?” So I decided to take it.